Alabama Withholding: What you need to know

Alabama is one of many states that impose a state tax on personal income. State withholding tax is the money an employer is required to withhold from each employee’s wages to pay the state income tax of the employee. The employer is responsible for collecting and remitting the tax withheld. The Alabama withholding law requires all employers in the state to withhold the Alabama income tax from wages paid to their employees at each payroll period. The definitions of “employers” and “employees” under Alabama's law are the same as for federal tax purposes, and changes to the federal Internal Revenue Code are automatically adopted. “Wages” are defined the same as for federal purposes except where the state has issued regulations to the contrary. An employer is any person or other entity for which an individual performs or performed a service, of any nature, as an employee of that person or entity. Withholding may be based on wage bracket withholding tables or the percentage method tables provided by the Department of Revenue (DOR) (AL Stat. Sec. 40-18-70 et seq.).

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Generally, all wages earned in Alabama are subject to Alabama withholding tax. Wages for Alabama withholding tax purposes include wages exempt from federal withholding if those wages represent taxable income under Alabama law and there is no state deduction corresponding to the allowable federal deduction. However, certain classes of employment are exempt from Alabama withholding tax. Alabama taxes must be withheld from all wages of residents and of nonresidents to the extent that they perform services in the state. A resident is a person who has a permanent home in Alabama and who spends at least 7 months a year in the ...